'Ordinary people bringing extraordinary hope'
 

The charity Dnipro Hope Mission (DHM) works with church partners in Eastern Ukraine - and wants to highlight the different ways people are using their gifts in the war  

Dnipro Hope Mission (DHM) is actively working with church partners in Eastern Ukraine, to provide life-saving care for refugees and disabled and elderly residents of care homes. Partners also offer medical supplies for the injured, support for pastors who are themselves providing pastoral support to local units of Ukrainian soldiers, who are defending their communities and families. Funds are sent to those who are bravely taking fresh supplies of food, water and medicine on a daily basis to those in desperate need, particularly to those fleeing conflict.

'DHM has been providing life-saving care through local Ukrainian churches, for almost 10 years,' says Joshua Searle, Founder of DHM says. 'Since the invasion in February 2022 DHM has been able to reach those in the most desperate need, through grants to fund the purchase of food, water, medicine and other essential supplies.

'But this would not be possible without the amazing people who bravely risk all to care for the hungry, fearful, injured and isolated.

'Below are some amazing sacrificial stories of how ordinary people are now called to do extraordinary things for Christ’s Kingdom.'


Vet to medical supplies deliverer 
One of DHM's partners Alexander who is based in the central Dnipro region, who before the war was working as a vet, is now engaged full time in delivering life-saving medicines to care homes and orphanages on the frontline in Eastern Ukraine. He often has to literally dodge bullets on his way to deliver essential supplies. In this context, ‘discipleship’ involves real courage as well as compassion.

Lecturer to linguist/translator 
Roman, a good friend of DHM from the Lviv region, worked as a lecturer. He now uses his skills as a communicator and linguist to write powerful reflections in English, about the cultural and spiritual changes that he is observing in Ukraine as a result of the war. Thereby helping many people throughout the world to grasp the deeper issues at stake in this war.

Opera singer to sandbag filler 
Kyrilo who was working as an opera singer before the war, now finds himself on the streets of Dnipro filling sandbags and digging trenches. He puts his professional operatic voice to good use by singing Ukrainian folk songs and Christian hymns while out on duty. By his ‘singing ministry’ he helps to lift the spirits of people caught up in this new frightening and surreal situation.

Cooking for family to baking pies for soldiers 
Elderly women in Poltava have discovered a new vocation: to bake pies for a local Ukrainian garrison defending the region from the Russian invaders. The pies are sent to a local church, where they are given to Ukrainian soldiers returning from the frontline.

'These testimonies of ordinary people doing extraordinary things challenge us to think about what we can do on our own ‘frontlines’,' adds Joshua.

'Although we might not find ourselves literally on the frontline in Ukraine, all of us are still called to join in God’s mission to transform the world into the image of his Kingdom.' 


Image | DHM's ministry partners, who work as doctors at Dnipro State Hospital

To find out more about the DHM charity, visit its website. To donate to its work, click here.